My Reflector Is Invincible - Chapter 19
My Reflector Is Invincible 19
19. Just Charge Right In
As soon as Aiden arrived at the mansion, he looked for someone.
“Head butler! Where is the head butler right now!”
His voice was filled with rage.
His voice made the servants rush over anxiously.
“Where is the head butler right now?”
“We’re not sure….”
“Are you saying you don’t know! Find him right now and bring him to me!”
“I, I’m sorry!”
At his words, the servants scattered like mice.
But Aiden’s anger didn’t subside.
‘To think there were so many bugs in my family.’
The betrayal of the head butler, whom he had trusted the most, cut him to the bone.
He was the only retainer who had access to his information. And he was the one who sold his information.
Creak.
An ominous sound leaked from his clenched fist.
But he soon regained his senses.
‘There was a traitor in my personal guard too. There’s no telling where else there might be traitors.’
The family was already in chaos over the issue of the next successor.
His worries about the position of the next Duke had disappeared the moment he found [him], Jooyeon, but one never knew.
After all, a traitor behind your back is scarier than an enemy in front of you.
‘I’ll start with the head butler…and eradicate all the bugs in my family.’
He also planned to take rightful revenge on Count Sanderson, who had humiliated his family.
But no matter how long he waited, the head butler didn’t come.
The servant who had gone to look for him kept avoiding his gaze.
Aiden’s eyebrows twitched, and with good reason.
“I clearly told you to bring the Chief Steward.”
“I… that…”
The attendant finally opened his mouth.
“The Chief Steward is currently with the Duke.”
“Then bring him as soon as he is finished speaking with Father.”
“But, that…”
“Can’t you speak properly? Do you have a death wish?”
At Aiden’s furious voice, the knights beside him drew their swords.
“Our Lord is the rightful successor of the Edmer family. Are you defying our Lord’s orders right now?”
“If you do not report properly… I will cut off your neck.”
His ferocious killing intent accompanied his words.
The attendant, terrified, finally opened his mouth.
“I tried to bring him, but…”
“But?”
“The Lord… told me to come and report to Lord Aiden.”
“What?”
“He said he had something to say about the Chief Steward’s work…”
As expected of Father.
He usually thought Aiden hated him, but he was a man of great ability as the head of the greatest family in the north.
It was clear that he had already noticed the Chief Steward’s betrayal.
He had probably called Aiden because of that.
“Fine. I will go right now.”
Aiden headed straight for the Duke’s office.
He thought that if nothing else, he would be able to punish the traitors.
But something unexpected happened.
“What? Leave the Chief Steward alone? Why! That bastard sold out not only me but also the family…”
The Duke replied coldly.
“That’s right. Don’t pass your mistakes onto others.”
“No. What do you mean by that, Father!”
Aiden jumped up from his chair.
He told him not to pass on his mistakes?
How could he forgive the one who had leaked information that could have gotten the family’s successor killed?
If it hadn’t been for Juyeon, he might actually be dead.
Aiden’s voice trembled with betrayal.
But the Duke’s voice was cold.
“You were the one who moved alone without the Royal Guards.”
So don’t go around getting ambushed like an idiot.
The Duke’s cold eyes seemed to be saying that.
Don’t blame others for the dangerous situations you got into because of your reckless behavior.
“That’s!”
“You’re saying that you went to help a runaway slave from a labor camp? Because it’s a noble’s duty? You’re not even an heir to a mere count, yet you act so recklessly as the heir to a duke!”
“Father…”
“Not father, but Lord. Can’t you even distinguish between the terms of address in a formal setting?”
“I… I apologize, Lord.”
Aiden was clearly trying to argue back.
However, he could only grit his teeth and bow his head at the Duke’s fierce rebuke.
“I’ll have to reconsider the matter of succession. Restrain yourself until I call for you. Hmph. A so-called successor.”
“…”
He trembled.
Aiden could not say anything in response.
‘Even so, to discuss the matter of succession because of something like this.’
The one who would decide the next Duke was certainly Duke Edmer.
However, the current Senate and the family members were pushing for Aiden to be the successor on the grounds of his primogeniture and ability.
No matter how much of a Duke he was, it was difficult to ignore the wishes of the Senate and his vassals.
‘So that’s why he’s trying to establish a pretext with such ridiculous arguments.’
It was as if Duke Edmer was being unreasonable in order to strip Aiden of his qualifications as successor.
At that moment, Aiden’s eyes flashed as he recalled something.
‘Could it be that Count Sanderson wasn’t the only one after my life?’
Duke Edmer. He was clearly after Aiden as well.
There were rumors that he wanted to pass on his position to his youngest son instead.
I had thought that it was because he was fond of his youngest son, who was born late, but it seemed that it was not a mere rumor.
‘But even so… How could he order the death of his own son?’
And to Count Sanderson, an enemy of the family, no less.
Aiden hid his angry face and turned away.
“I understand. I will… step down for now.”
But it didn’t matter.
‘Father. No, Lord. Things will not go as you wish.’
After all, as long as [he] was the main character, Aiden would be the next Duke.
No matter how great the authority of the Duke within the family, it could not be greater than the promise of the previous Lord, the [Knight King].
Aiden left the room, his eyes bloodshot.
Was it because his head was slightly feverish?
He pushed past the man entering the room without recognizing his face.
“Out of my way!”
He was the sorcerer, Bayner.
He was a man who had come under the orders of the main character.
* * *
The main character was in trouble.
The Duke…he’s trying to kill Adien?
Even joining hands with Count Sanderson to do it?
Was it really necessary to go this far?
At that moment, Veiner’s voice echoed in Jooyeon’s head.
＜Marking＞ allowed the two of them to converse to a certain extent.
-That’s because…there’s no justification.
‘Justification? What justification?’
-Currently, there are three successors to the dukedom. And among them, Sir Adien has an overwhelming advantage.
An outstanding eldest son and a composed second son.
And then there was the third son, born of a concubine.
Among them, Adien had overwhelming support as the successor.
-No less than two knights who wield ＜Chivalry＞ have pledged their loyalty to him, and the majority of the knights also support Sir Adien.
It was all thanks to Adien’s own outstanding talents and qualities.
Far from being manipulated by Jooyeon, he had the dignity to be called the next Duke wherever he went.
His skills were so great that even the knights acknowledged them.
What on earth could be lacking in such an outstanding successor??
There was no need to search for an answer.
Because he could hear the Duke’s voice through Veiner.
-I told you not to act rashly.
-I apologize, Your Grace.
-Why is that bastard still alive? Didn’t you say he was dead?
It was the effect of ＜Marking＞.
He could observe the Duke’s office in real time, as if he were controlling a character.
Veiner was like a living CCTV.
At that moment, he saw the head butler come out, drenched in sweat.
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-I also clearly…heard that he was dead…
-But he’s alive? What the hell have you been doing all this time!
-I apologize!
-Useless fool.
The butler couldn’t say anything to the Duke’s cold voice.
No, he couldn’t.
-Keugh…
An unseen, swift sword sliced the butler’s neck.
It was the knight who had been standing by who swung the sword.
Immediately after, the Duke’s cold voice rang out.
-Get rid of it.
-Yes.
The other knights who had been waiting dragged the butler’s body away.
Now, only the Duke and the magician Veiner remained in the office.
-You’ve been away for a long time.
– My apologies, Your Grace.
– Why?
– That is… that is…
If I don’t say it right, my neck might get cut off.
But if I tell the truth, the Crown Prince will kill me.
Vayner was in a dilemma.
– Tell me what I want to know.
‘Yes!’
The Crown Prince’s order rang in his head.
Vayner quickly opened his mouth.
– I was on a mission.
– What mission?
– To find out the variable, in case the prince were to come back alive.
– Variable…
The Duke already knew that Vayner was on a separate mission for Count Sanderson.
Vayner was a double agent for Count Sanderson and the Duke.
‘Is he now a triple agent, even to me?’
Of course, since he was now leashed by the Crown Prince, he had no choice but to obey unconditionally.
Unaware of this, the lord’s voice was cold enough to make him draw his sword at any moment.
– What was the variable?
– I don’t know yet…
– You’re useless.
As the Duke was about to move again, Vayner hastily opened his mouth.
He didn’t know what it meant. But he said what the Crown Prince had told him.
– The Prince seems to have found ‘him’.
– What?
Instantly, a chilling murderous aura spread throughout the office.
‘Him’ was a secret known only to the lord and his successors.
The Duke supported his chin with his gloved hand.
– You’d better start talking straight now. Where did you get that information?
– That is…
– Do you want to end up like him?
– Magic! I eavesdropped with magic. I don’t know who ‘he’ is, but the man who came with Prince Aiden called him that.
– …
The office fell silent for a moment.
– ‘Him’… My father clearly made a promise. To give the position of the next lord to the one who finds him.
– His Majesty the Sword King? How on earth did he make such a promise…
– It doesn’t matter why. What matters is that ‘the Sword King’ made the promise, and if that happens, that punk Aiden will become the next lord. The youngest will lose his chance forever.
– …!?
Vayner was visibly startled.
The word “that” revealed the duke’s true intentions, which had been hidden until now.
But that moment was short-lived.
“Get out.”
“S-spare my life?”
“You’re still useful. I’ll decide later.”
“Th-thank you!”
As Bayner left, the situation inside the office was no longer visible.
However, Jooyeon’s eyes had grown cold.
Ha… Is that all?
Was that the reason?
To change the successor?
Are you trying to destroy the most prestigious family in the North for such a trivial reason?
It was too absurd.
‘He used to be kind in the past.’
In the past, Jooyeon had a connection with the [Knight King]’s family.
From his lover to his children, they had all passed through Jooyeon’s hands.
It seemed that things that should have happened while he was imprisoned had changed.
‘Could it be that the difficulty level has changed?’
A future different from the one Jooyeon remembered might unfold.
He had to move quickly.
‘The most urgent thing right now is this rotten body.’
A low-quality body that sweats and breathes heavily after walking a short distance.
He had developed rheumatism from 18 years of slavery.
Although it didn’t matter yet because of , it was something that could hinder his movement in the future.
‘It will be too late to heal my body when that time comes.’
Fortunately, Duke Edmer’s family was the same as in Jooyeon’s memory.
The separate building assigned to him.
Something special was hidden here.
Could it be an easter egg hidden for the next character?
‘They must have spent a lot of money making this.’
The design of this dukedom was Jooyeon’s own, and everything in this castle had been touched by his hands.
In a sense, it was Jooyeon’s hideout.
“Don’t let anyone in from now on.”
“Understood.”
At Jooyeon’s command, Knight Olson answered resolutely and left the room.
He had even warned them not to let anyone in, even if it was the lord of the house.
“Well, then, shall we begin?”
Jooyeon went into the bathroom.
There were many buttons on the bathtub in the bathroom.
It felt more modern than medieval.
In fact, there were many modern things in the ‘Valentino Saga’ for the convenience of the game.
So you could do this if you had the money.
Click.
When you open the cold and hot water buttons at a certain ratio, and press this button while the bubble and soap buttons are all on.
Splash, splash, splash, splash.
Red water was supposed to fall from the bathtub.
It wasn’t just water.
A potion.
“Potions are usually said to be for healing.”
But it wasn’t an ordinary potion, and the effect was different because a higher-level potion was added.
＜Strength increased!＞
＜Stamina increased!＞
＜Speed strengthened!＞
＜Vision strengthened!＞
The physical performance increases in real time.
Like a complete transformation, the rotten skin peeled off.
Baby-like, beautiful skin was revealed.
It wasn’t just the body that was getting better.
＜Dignity increased!＞
＜Charm acquired!＞
＜Charisma acquired!＞
In an instant, it was possible to create a character with the greatest potential.
It was a super-boosting elixir that completely changed the body that had become bony from 18 years of slave life.
‘I never thought I’d use this.’
It was intended to be used for occasional gag characters or colleagues.
No matter how trashy the characters or colleagues were, it was a special item that could strengthen them to a normal level.
It was a good thing I prepared it in advance.
“Surely you will show your true colors tonight.”
Don’t be reassured by the name of the [King of Knights].
First of all, there was a high possibility that Duke Edmer, the head of the family, would be after him.
Well, I did ask Bener to do it on purpose. Anyway, I had to finish the job before he came.
“More than that, there’s been such a commotion, but the King of Knights isn’t showing up?”
The King of Knights was known to be receiving treatment at his mother’s house after the battle with the Demon King.
But no matter how injured he was, he was the former head of the family.
He was the kind of person who would have come out in person with such a fuss.
‘Is it possible that the actual reality and the game’s character are different?’
Or there could be something wrong with the King of Knights.
It could be a female lead with increased difficulty.
The situation was flowing much more urgently than the protagonist had experienced so far.
But what does that matter?
“If you don’t come out, I’ll just barge right in.”
Splash.
Joo-Yeon got into the bathtub and laid down.
His body began to slowly sink into the potion.
Whew!
And a blinding light burst out of the bathtub.